Ryner, Birgitta

What should we sing? : A music education discourse Relating to the period between the two world wars (English)

Abstract [en]

The thesis contains an analysis and interpretation of the school music debate that was particularly lively during the 1930s. The debate started with an article in Stockholms-Tidningen – Stockholms Dagblad entitled Why not sing popular songs in music classes? The author was Knut Brodin, a music teacher at Olofskolan, a school run in accordance with the principals of educational progressivism, inspired by John Dewey.

The debate developed into a confrontation between tradition and renewal. The foundations of music teaching, indeed of school education as a whole, both form and content, were at stake. The debate also raised questions about values in view of the increasing popularity of popular music and its potentially harmful effect on morals.

The purpose of the thesis is to describe and interpret the Swedish discourse on music teaching during the 1930s. The main question is: What educational and other ideas were expressed in this discourse and what was their origin?

The theoretical and methodical framework of the thesis is discourse analysis. The material studied consisted of texts in the form of statements about music and music teaching. The analysis reveals a struggle for power, i.e. the power to win the right to interpret and define the basic elements of the discourse.

Music and music teaching emerge in a broader social context in connection with the analysis of the discourse. The terms music and music teaching turn out to be variable and ambiguous. The same applies to other terms such as children and education. The period studied here witnessed a marked professionalization of music teachers which sharpened the ideological struggle between different groups. The discourse was marked by the incompatibility between traditional and progressive tendencies.